Our History
138 Years Young
Officially the club started in 1884, on the grounds of the Presbyterian Church, Grand River Street North. Prior to this a green was located on Andrew Baird’s front yard and at some point beside the skating rink on Elm Street.
In 1893 the club relocated to its present location to make way for the building of the Paris Presbyterian Church. The land it now stands on was rented. Also in 1893 the Paris Lawn, Tennis & Bowling Club was formed
On September 19th, 1927 the Paris Lawn Bowling Club was incorporated under the Ministry of Consumer & Commercial Relations. The incorporation number was 000028060.
In 1928, Reginald Turnball purchased the land and consolidated the deeds. He then gave the lands to the club in the form of a gift. At this time, he also built a clubhouse at his expense as well as all other amenities for the club.
In 1928 a meeting was held at the Community Hall chaired by Matthew Deans, Vice-Chair of the club. The purpose of the meeting was to determine it a ladies section should be created in the club. Thirty women signed up to become members on that date. The ladies section continued into the 1980’s.
In 1948 the old clubhouse was sold and a new one built which is the current structure. The club was prosperous until the early 1980’s. Due to poor membership numbers the club was forced to conduct several major fundraising projects to keep operating.
On November 4, 1986 the club sold the property to the Town of Paris for $1.00. The town agreed to maintain the property as per the agreement. The agreement and grounds were transferred from the Town of Paris to the County of Brant.
The club membership dipped down to 13 members in 2015 and was going to be closed down unless membership numbers went up next year. An infamous house party occurred in Paris in 2016 and a challenge for a call to action was declared by David Powell.
By 2019 the club had seen an increase in membership to 75 paying members. Sadly, the pandemic intervened and we were unable to open in 2020. In 2021 the club adhered to all the recommended health protocols but only managed to attract 36 members. The fees for 2022 are $90 for the year with $36 of that going to the Ontario Lawn Bowling Association.
The club is struggling financially and will cease to exist in the near future without new members. It’s a magical summer evening down by the Grand River with the train bridge and waterfalls as the backdrop.
Although appropriate to its setting and not without its charms, the existing clubhouse is nearly 75 years old and requires updating to today's standards.
A 2019 Relocation/Renewal Report supported by Brant County Council recommended that the building be replaced with a new multi-purpose facility that can be used year-round. The focus of the facility will be for continued use by the Lawn Bowling Club, but also to support older adults and the general public.
The existing building footprint will be maintained on the site with modern, accessible facilities that will be able to be used by the community for many purposes such as lawn bowling league and event play, seniors programming and general rentals.
The consulting architect will engage stakeholders to develop drawings and tender documents through the remainder of 2022 in preparation of a tender release in 2023, pending Council approval.
Help us keep the club going. Come on out and join us for an outdoor sport that's entertaining for all ages!
